Jonah Ryan
'''Jonah Ryan '''is an American politician and former political adviser who served as a U.S. Representative from New Hampshire's 2nd congressional district. He was elected on December 21, 2016, in a special Congressional race held in New Hampshire. Prior to this, he served as the White House liaison to Presidents Stuart Hughes and Selina Meyer from 2013 to 2016. He is a member of the Democratic Party. He has announced his candidacy for President in the 2020 presidential election. Description Jonah is, in a way, an honorary member of the Veep's team - although, as he is keen to point out, he actually works for The White House. One of his many roles is to act as a kind of liaison between the White House and the Vice President's office, shuttling messages back and forth. As Amy puts it: "You always know when Jonah's in the office - he totally changes the atmosphere. He just hits the place like a tornado." Jonah says, "I'm a conduit between the President and the Vice President and it's tremendously exciting for me to have been given such a vital role at such a young age. When I stop to think about it, it literally blows my mind. I think pretty much everyone in DC must be jealous of me. But I'm trying not to get too big-headed about my success. I'm just working hard, doing my thing for the President." He describes himself as, "the go-to guy for all things White House." Early Life Jonah grew up in New Hampshire. His mother was apparently raising him as a single mother. He has a poor relationship with his first and third step-fathers. White House Liaison (2013 - 2015) Beginning in 2013, Jonah is working for the White House as a link between the President's office and the VP's office. He brags about how close he is to President Hughes. He, however, bumps heads with everyone in Selina's office, and it is later revealed that everyone in the West Wing hates him too. After Hughes, who is in Africa, comes down with a sickness and is temporarily incapacitated, Jonah begins being very respectful towards Selina, fearing she could be his boss. Jonah continues to get more involved in the VP's office, including going with Selina to various events, such as her daughter's 21st birthday party and a North Carolina Pig Roast. After learning Selina will be running for President in the 2016 election, Jonah continues to insert himself in her campaign. In the third season, Jonah is revealed to be the author of a political gossip blog (writing under the name "West Wing Man") where he posts embarrassing photos of the VP's team members and leaked news about the departure of the POTUS. He is subsequently fired by Kent and is humiliated by the rest of his co-workers on his way out of the building. Ryantology & Maddox campaign aide (2015 - 2016) Following his job loss and his hate towards Washington, Jonah begins a news site called Ryantology. One of his first stories is on Hughes reversing his stance on abortion and Selina's inability to come up with her own stance. He is invited to go on MSNBC, but is threatened by Dan not to say a word on the VP's office. He is also at the Annapolis event where Selina announced her campaign for president. As tension between Selina and Chung builds, Dan tells Jonah that there are rumors that Chung tortured people in Iraq. In the midst of this, Jonah is pleased to learn that Clovis wants to buy Ryantology, offering to pay him $4-6 million. Jonah publishes the story on Chung, damaging Chung's reputation, and Clovis later withdraws their offer to Jonah. Sometime after this, Ryantology is shut down. Jonah begins working for George Maddox, becoming his bagman, and later a "spy" for when Selina goes to London. He masterminds the handshake blunder in Detroit. At the primary debate, Maddox does poorly and comes in last place. His campaign lasts until January. The Chung torture rumors turn out to be false, and Dan needs Jonah to disavow the rumors publicly in return for a job in the West Wing. Return to the West Wing & Run for Congress (2016 - 2017) Jonah returns to his old job as White House Liaison between newly-appointed President Selina Meyer and Vice President Andrew Doyle. Richard Splett becomes Jonah's personal assistant. Jonah is repeatedly harassed by Doyle's chief of staff Teddy Sykes, with Teddy groping Jonah's testicles. Teddy is fired at the 2016 Democratic National Convention. Jonah then becomes an advocate for men's health. In order to get the Families First Bill to fail, Selina sends Jonah and Richard out to lobby for the bill, knowing that they'll screw it up and actually get Congresspeople to vote against it. After one of the congresspeople realizes what the Meyer team is doing, the whole thing leads to a Congressional hearing. Jonah and Richard testify. When the election ends in a tie, Richard is made recount specialist, and Selina says that Jonah is working for Richard. Jonah then hires Cliff as his personal assistant to feel important. Jonah, Richard, Cliff, Amy, and Dan all head to Nevada to win Selina the recount. Jonah, Richard, and Cliff lead a "count the votes" protest as the recount deadline comes forward. However, after O'Brien takes the lead, they unknowingly continue protesting when Dan wants them to take the opposite side. After Congressman Harry Sherman abruptly dies, Jonah is chosen by his uncle to run against Sherman's widow, who was also his second grade teacher, for his congressional seat. Though Jonah takes this as an honour it is revealed he was only chosen because no one else is stupid enough to want to run against Sherman's widow for one term, after which Jonah's uncle wants to replace him with his war-hero cousin. Jonah's campaign is marked by repeated setbacks such as the fact that the electorate hates him and his abrasive interactions with the public are often videotaped and sent to the media. Jonah hits on the winning strategy of insulting Selina after she calls him and insults him for being incompetent. However, his short lived popularity declines in Congressional Ball after he is filmed yelling at Teddy Sykes calling him a monster. His opponents filmed his rant so that it looked as if he was yelling at Polly, a bowling alley employee with down syndrome. After a failed hunting publicity stunt where he literally shoots himself in the foot, Jonah begins to slip in the polls. In response to this blunder, his opponent Judy Sherman makes a fleeting comment about how guns can be unsafe. This comment results in the NRA launching a series of last minute attack ads against Sherman, enabling Jonah to win the election and take his place in the 115th United States Congress. He appoints Richard Splett as his chief of staff. U.S. House of Representatives (2017 - 2019) On January 2, 2017, Jonah is sworn in as U.S. Representative from New Hampshire's second congressional district in the 115th United States Congress. The morning of the congressional vote for the presidency on January 3, he wakes up late, in the home of a high school student after having a one-night stand. Though he is ultimately able to get to congress and vote for Selina to become president, by that time her plan has changed and she wanted him to vote for O'Brien. In what is deemed to be a mistake by Roger Furlong, Jonah hires a staff of male interns that are much more attractive than he is. Instead of acting professional in his position of power, Jonah acts like one of the "bros". After a game of office basketball leads to an intense pain in his crotch, Jonah is diagnosed with testicular cancer. He later underwent six weeks of chemotherapy and had one of his cancerous testicles removed. One year later, Jonah is still in Congress and speaking out against "The Healthy School Lunch Act", believing kids should be able to eat unhealthy junk food if they want. Jonah later meets with Private Prison magnate Sherman Tanz. Despite not making a good first impression, Tanz is impressed when Jonah speaks out against Daylight Saving Time, and invests $5 million into Jonah, providing him with a new and improved staff who aid in writing legislation for him At an event hosted by Tanz, Jonah meets Shawnee Tanz. Despite initially mistaking her for her fathers wife, the two later go back to his office and have sex. Afterwards, she begins picking his outfits, telling him how to vote on bills, and polishing his image for the public. When Jonah states that he would like to go to now House Minority Leader Roger Furlong's house for dinner in exchange for him supporting Roger's airport bill, Shawnee comes along, declaring that they're engaged, and telling Jonah to pick up the ring that night. At Roger's house, Shawnee is able to corner Roger into getting Jonah a new office. Now engaged to Shawnee, Jonah begins to undergo the process of converting to Judaism so he can marry her. Jonah later forms an alliance with several congresspeople from the New England area, who brand themselves as 'the Jeffersons'. When he is not invited to the Meyer portrait unveiling, he and the Jeffersons decide to vote against a bill to raise the debt ceiling, shutting down the government. The shutdown lasts for 25 days, and ultimately hurts Jonah in the polls. With the people of New Hampshire turning against him after the shutdown, Jonah faces an uphill battle as he runs for re-election in the 2018 midterms against an opponent named DiVacentes. As he recovers from a circumcision operation, Jonah's uncle Jeff Kane arrives to tell him that he's replacing Jonah on the ballot with his cousin, Ezra Kane. Immediately after hearing this, Shawnee calls off their engagement and dumps him. In a desperate attempt to secure his place in politics, Jonah meets with Sherman Tanz, who tells him that despite his fondness for Jonah he is now only buying Senators and Presidents to create "reasonable change". Presidential Run (2019 - present) After his cousin Ezra is elected in the 2018 midterms, Jonah moves back into his mothers house. In January 2019, Jonah announced his candidacy for President in the 2020 presidential election. Members of his campaign team include Teddy Sykes and Bill Ericsson. Trivia * In the pilot script, Jonah is intended to be a heavy drinker and heavy smoker. * Jonah is fructose intolerant, which is very rare. See also * Jonah Ryan presidential campaign, 2020 Gallery Episode-28-01-1920.jpg Episode-27-06-1920.jpg Episode-09-01-1920.jpg Episode-25-07-1920.jpg Category:Characters Category:Representatives Category:Democrats